Kirk and Spock didn't know where Scotty had gone. All they knew was that when they got back to the Starfleet Academy for some recuperation, Scotty jettisoned off to god-knows-where with Admiral Pike. They had been gone for almost a week. And the crew only had one more week of "vacation" left before getting back onto the USS Enterprise to head off in search of new planets and life forms.
The Enterprise was in serious need of patching up after their last mission on Janus VI. But what was in even more need of repair was her crew. The Enterprise had lost several of their finest crew members and officers. The one that continually seemed to come up was the loss of Lieutenant Nyota Uhura. Commander Spock had taken off several personal days that Captain Kirk was more than willing to give him. Commander Spock had been through enough over the past year; between the death of his mother during the destruction of his planet of Vulcan and the more recent death of his lover, Nyota Uhura, Kirk was amazed that after four personal days, Spock had come back onto the bridge.
When Scotty and Admiral Pike finally showed back up at the Academy, they had someone new with them. Kirk, Spock, and Dr. Leonard McCoy had been sitting on bench going over a few minor details that needed to be settled before the Enterprise should head off again. Admiral Pike left the shuttle and headed immediately towards his apartment complex. Scotty was walking towards the three of the them with a woman trudging along behind him. She was wearing a black tank top, jeans, a pair of work boots, and had a knapsack slung over her shoulder. As Scotty got closer to the three sitting on the bench, he picked up his walking speed and the girl fell behind a few more steps before falling into a stride to fit his speed.
Through his thick Scottish accent, Scotty began, "Uh, hey guys, remember a little while ago when I mentioned somethin' 'bout getting' an assistant?"
"I do believe I remember a conversation in which you mentioned it, but you also promptly said that one might get 'under foot' too much."
"Yeh', well' I got mehself an assistant. Er name's Lassuel."
"Under whose orders is she allowed on the ship? Is she even a a member of Starfleet?"
"Well.....Not exactly."
"Hold on Spock, we're missing something. Why do you need an assistant again?" Kirk chimed in.
"Remember when Nero's ship blew up?" All three of them nodded their heads. "Well, we couldn't get out of the hole without some sort of extra propulsion. 'Ssuel, here, is gonna help me figure out how to make the warp drives faster. If anyone can do it, she can." As Scotty spoke, Spock got a better look at the girl's face. The first thing he noticed was her arched eyebrows, however her unruly hair kept him from discovering if she pointed ears as well. She kept her face glaring at the back of the engineer's shirt.
"And Admiral Pike is allowing this?" Spock continued with his interrogation.
"He's the one who initially suggested it."
"Suggested an assistant or her specifically?"
"Her specifically. Listen, Commander, I know this isn't with 'protocol', but if you want, she can prove her worth, but let me get her settled in first of all." Without recognition of what Spock might have replied, Scotty grabbed Lassuel's hand and pulled her towards the dormitory building where he was staying. After a few steps the girl wrenched her hand out of his and said very loudly, "Keep you fucking hands off me!" All three of the men gave the two heading off a highly puzzled look. Spock immediately headed off toward Admiral Pike's apartment with Kirk trailing behind him. McCoy mentioned something about taking some time in the clinic on base and headed in that general vicinity.
"Spock, I know that this is completely against protocol, but even Admiral Pike has ordered us to let her on as Scotty's assistant." Kirk was heading back to his and his first officer's apartment complex.
"I have already said, on multiple occasions, that if that is what Admiral Pike has ordered of us, then I will not go against it, despite my obvious displeasure at the situation." Spock's monotone was not broken by his displeasure, but Kirk was beginning to notice when Spock was more than normally annoyed. Particularly since Nyota's death, Spock had begun to confide certain details of the traditional Vulcan (and his in particular) life to Kirk. During these conversations, Kirk had begun to notice the minute details and changes in Spock's tone of voice or facial expressions.
Scotty was walking down one of the hall's of the USS Enterprise. Beside him was his new assistant. The look on her face was enough to tell him that she wanted him not to say anything other than what were behind certain doors that might pertain to her daily life aboard the starship. She had agreed to work with him, albeit reluctantly, and that had not included conversations outside what was needed for said work.
"This is where you're room is. Mine's the next door down. I've showed youh the rest of the ship tha' you'll need to know. Other than that, I think you'll manage pretty easily. I'll let you just get settled in. See you tomorrow on the engine deck." He lingered for a moment before heading back the way he came. The girl, Lassuel, entered the room. As she stepped through the sliding doors, the lights dimmed on and the room came into focus. It was smaller than the last apartment she had rented, but it would do for the time being. She didn't need space for herself, just from everyone else.
After tossing her bag onto her bed, she headed into the bathroom to wash her face. One look told her that she needed to get more sleep, but that wouldn't happen...ever. Her black hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, which hid her pointed ears. Her eyebrows were harder to hide, and she'd stopped giving herself the time of day to do it properly, so in the end, when someone finally looked her in the face, they pretty much discovered that she was Vulcan.
Not that being Vulcan mattered to her much anymore. That particular race hadn't done much for her other than provide a heritage. She had grown up on Earth. As a baby, she had been dumped for whatever reason on the doorstep of an unsuspecting older couple. They had tried to raise her to the best of their abilities, however, they had to put their foot down when the rages began to become more and more extreme.
Her first school crush and resulted in the hospitalization of both herself and the unknowing boy. When he had turned her down to go to a dance, she had tried to slit his throat, and then her own.
The day her dog died, she had tried to bury herself with him.
On the playground, when a few of the other youngsters tried to pick a fight with her, several of her peers ended up with broken bones.
As she turned into an adolescent, the change in hormones added to her already fragile control on her emotions. In summary, she broke.
The only time when she was able to maintain control of herself was when she was working on something. It was hard though; despite her aggression, she was able to graduate high school relatively on time with strong grades. At first, ten colleges accepted her, a couple without her even applying to them. Apparently, they all thought that in a more "civilized" educational setting, she would be able to thrive.
After hopping colleges for around six years, she finally earned her bachelor's degree in physics and mathematics. The only reason why she had earned a Master's at all was because a college had awarded her one for her work on gravity systems for starships. She was only able to stay with a team for half a year at the most before they finally got fed up with her and her rages.
She had been in Juno, Alaska, trying her hand at fixing land vehicles rather than working on anything quantum related for a while when Scotty and Admiral Pike showed up at her door. The city was beginning to become rather annoyed with her and she knew that she was going to be leaving soon. It was probably a good thing that they had showed up, but he was still the last person in the world she wanted to see, let alone work with.
However, here she was now. Staring at herself in a mirror in her room on the USS Enterprise. Working under one of the few people in the universe she truly hated.
They were heading to Betazed for a relatively easy mission. Dispatching a new Ambassador from Earth. The former one had died after serving as an Ambassador for 50 years, most of that had been spent on Betazed.
Kirk spent a good deal of his time with the Ambassador and his family and thusly, the bridge was left to Spock. He spent as much time as his Captain allowed on the bridge. The Captain seemed to also have taken a good deal of interest in his first officer's work habits and make particular sure that the Vulcan had some "free time." Spock's free time was spent usually reading journals of various Scientists or working on research himself.
Kirk, McCoy, and Scotty continued their usual drinking nights together. Just to take sometime off to relax as much as they could. Every so often Lassuel would join them, announcing that Scotty had threatened to kick her out of the Engine deck for the next week if she didn't join in. The two of them knew that there was nothing the Scot could do to keep her from her work, but at least she'd get out of her room once in a while. One of the evenings that Kirk, McCoy, and Scotty were in the lounge drinking and having a fine time, both Vulcans on board showed up to join them.
"Jim, I decided to follow up on your request that I join you all tonight."
"Well, that's just fine Spock, pull up a drink and a chair and relax a bit." Kirk lifted his drink to his lips and took a sip.
"I'll join in you in conversation, but, preferably, I do not wish to drink." Spock pulled a chair over to them.
"Tha' works too." The Scottish man continued on with a story he'd been telling of one of the Ensigns on the Engine deck. Because of some unfortunate blundering and happenstance, the Ensign had ended up in an unfortunate, but nonetheless, hilarious situation. When the laughter died down and as McCoy had begun to relate one of his stories, the doors to the lounge opened again and the other Vulcan and Scotty's assistant walked through the doors.
"Well, I didn't think you'd take me up on my offer. What's up?" Scotty stiffened slightly as the girl walked into the room.
"You locked me out of my own computer system. I figured that was your way of saying 'get a life.'" She pulled up a chair and squeezed it between where Spock and McCoy were sitting.
McCoy took a quick look around the circle and continued on with his story. It took the three humans a bit to get back into their usual mood of revelry, but as the two Vulcans did not say much of anything, the mood lightened with great ease back to it normal status. Sometime later, while Kirk was telling a joke, Spock turned to Lassuel and asked, "Who were your parents?"
"I don't know." She had already pulled her legs up beside her on the chair and was now drumming her fingers on them.
"How did you end up on Earth?" Spock asked the question quietly enough not to interrupt the other three's conversation.
"Good question."
"Under which Vulcans did you learn to control your emotions?"
"I didn't."
"I do not understand."
"I assume that you have looked up my file."
"I found your criminal record. I was not privileged to read your academic record."
"Then you can assume that I never learned control over my emotions."
"Fascinating."
"I'm on duty tomorrow, I'm heading to bed." Spock rose with Lassuel and put his chair back as she did. Scotty took a glance at the two of them, but didn't say anything. It was obvious that Spock still had more questions. When they got out into the corridor, Spock put his hand on her shoulder.
"It was not my intention to upset you."
"Oh well." Lassuel turned around and look Spock square in the eye.
"May I ask a few more questions?"
"Fuck it." Lassuel mumbled this phrase as she brought her arm back and shot it off in the direction of Spock's face. Spock immediately caught it. She anticipated this and brought her other hand up and slammed it into his stomach. He didn't show any recognition that something had hit him, just grabbed her free hand with his and held onto it.
"You may be stronger than a human, but your fighting technique needs work."
"Fuck you." She spun out of his hands, doing so as she brought up a knee to hit him in the hip. He, however, caught this before it landed a blow.
"By attacking an officer, you could lose your spot in Starfleet and become court marshaled. However, I believe I am understanding of your position. I shall not report you if you would in return answer my questions." In Spock's confidence with the Captain, he'd picked up a few of Kirk's traits of getting his way.
"I'm not even in Starfleet. Do you think it matters to me if you court martial me?"
"In that case, prison time would be adequate."
Lassuel froze, pulled out of Spock's grasped and headed down the hall. He quickly caught up to her, "May I assume then that you will answer my questions?"
"What ever."
They headed toward the Engine deck as Spock asked question after question of the female Vulcan next to him.
A year had passed since the crew had set out with a new Engineer on board. It had taken six months for the two Vulcans to even mildly talk to each other. That usually included Spock asking questions of her, sometimes while they were sitting, but usually while she was working on something on the Engine deck. Another four had passed before Spock's questions had turned into conversations for the two of them with a mutual amount of questions asked. Two months later, meals were incorporated into their conversations.
"Spock, how was you're date last night?" A beaming Kirk asked of his first officer.
"I do not know what you are talking about Jim."
"Oh come on, when are the two of you going to admit that you are dating?"
Jim had just arrived at the cafeteria for breakfast starting on the bridge. Spock had just gotten off duty from the bridge and was having a bite to eat before going to bed.
"Ms. Lassuel and I are not dating, nor, I do believe, will we begin dating."
"Is that because of Uhura?"
The fork between the plate and the half-Vulcan's mouth stopped.
"If you are assuming that my feelings for Nyota are the reason that Ms. Lassuel and I are not as you put it 'dating', then you are severely mistaken." Spock lowered the fork, grabbed his plate and promptly left the table.
On his way toward his room, he passed by the chief Engineer, Scotty.
"Uh, Commander?" Scotty paused as Spock came closer toward him.
"Yes, Lieutenant?"
"There was a bit of an accident in Engineering."
"What happened?"
"Lassuel fell. She's in Medical." Spock didn't wait for Scotty to saying anything more before changing his course of direction.
As he arrived in Medical, McCoy headed him off first. "She's going to be alright."
Spock immediately scanned the room and found the dark haired woman lying on one of the beds. "What happened?" He asked as took the steps between the door and her bed.
"An Ensign lost his footing. The two of them were in the higher up platforms of the deck, he slipped. She caught him and got him to safety just to fall herself. She fell on her head."
McCoy had already healed the wound on the outside of her head and had done what he could to help her brain recover from the fall, but she was still unconscious. Spock just stood there looking at her. "How long do you think she will remain here?"
"I don't know."
Spock took a quick look around the room, found what he was looking for and grabbed a chair to pull to Lassuel's bedside. "I will watch over her for you."
McCoy nodded and headed to his desk to work on something. Spock just stared at the Vulcan lying on the bed. Spock eventually grabbed a PADD and began reading some while he continued his vigil.
It had taken the better part of a day for Lassuel to awaken, but eventually, she opened her eyes to see First Officer of the USS Enterprise, Commander Spock watching her intently.
"How long was I out?"
Spock waited a second before answering.
"Twelve hours and thirty-five minutes."
"Ugh. I thought I was getting somewhere too."
"What is the last thing you remember?"
"I was finishing some rewiring when that fellow began to fall. I grabbed him, pulled him back up, and then slipped on something myself."
"It is good to see that you have not lost much memory because of this."
Spock's lip twitched in the slightest and most minute movement. Lassuel was looking around at the Medical Bay. McCoy had come over with a scanner when Spock had begun talking. Lassuel's broken arm and leg had been fixed the moment she came in so when McCoy's scanner showed no objection, McCoy gave her a glass of water and said she could leave, but highly recommended that she do so in the company of someone. Spock had looked at McCoy when he said this, but did not say anything. Lassuel sat up, drank the water, and got off the bed.
"I assume you are hungry." Spock and Lassuel headed out together, side by side.
"Famished." She took a right and headed toward the cafeteria.
They continued their journey in silence. Spock, too, put a plate of food together and sat down with her.
"How do you feel?"
"Like a sledgehammer hit my head, but I guess that's how I'm supposed to feel. Amazingly enough, I'm really tired too."
"I suspect that it would not be a good idea for you to go to sleep soon. If you would like, I can help keep you awake."
Lassuel looked at Spock. Spock's face also changed, but to one of confusion.
"Thank you very much Spock. I would really appreciate it." She smiled deeply and Spock's face went back to its usual stoic nature.
"What were you rewiring before you fell?"
Between mouthfuls, Lassuel answered him. "Scotty and I discovered that some of the traditional wiring between some of the engines is unnecessarily slow. With some of the updates in technology that have happened since the Enterprise was commissioned, we were able to remove some unnecessary parts and add faster ones."
"How did you come across this discovery?"
"We work with a virtual model of the engine deck. By playing around with that, we can try things without destroying the ship. It was a 'let's see if...' moment of Scotty's."
"You also seem to have many of those moments. I remember particular conversations in which you would ask what I might do in a particular situation."
"Well, it's the human in me."
"I still do not understand why you use that phrase, there is no human in you; you are full Vulcan."
Lassuel sighed. "Sometimes a phrase is just a phrase, Spock."
"You have said that before as well. If you would like, when you return to the Engine deck, I would be happy to assist you to see that this situation doesn't happen again."
"You're never happy Spock, but I would love for you to help me."
"On the certain occasion, I am happy."
"When?"
Spock paused for a moment as Lassuel finished her plate of food. He noticed that she was becoming drowsy and should get to her room as soon as possible, but he wanted to answer her question first. "When I first entered the Starfleet Academy." Lassuel nodded in acceptance of his answer.
They left the table, Spock grabbed both of their trays, put them in the proper receptacle, and they headed toward Lassuel's room. He kept an eye trained on the woman in case she toppled over with exhaustion.
Lassuel made no objection when Spock followed her into her quarters. They were considerably smaller than his own, but he did notice that she had added a few personal object about the room. There was a picture of the older couple that had initially raised her, a physical copy of her diplomas, and an archaic circuit board.
She flopped down on to her bed while Spock sat down at the end of it. "You don't need to tuck me in. I'm perfectly old enough to do that myself."
"Tuck you in?"
"Make me comfortable in bed so I might fall asleep faster."
"That was not my intention. I just want to make sure that you did not have any issues getting here."
"Thanks, and good night."
With that, Lassuel rolled over, pulling a blanket over her and Spock left the room. Kirk had stopped by Medical earlier and told Spock to come back in when he was ready. Spock felt rather tired himself, so he went to his own room to sleep for a little while before returning to the bridge.
Many months later, Scotty and Lassuel were talking over lunch. She hadn't officially forgiven him for the crime that he had done her, however they were able to converse relatively easily on topics other than those that took place on the Engineering Deck.
"So, what's the deal with you and Spock?"
"What do you mean Scotty?"
"You two've been spending more time together than ever. Are you two a couple or what?"
"No." Lassuel looked away from her companion and looked at the other people in the room. Scotty recognized that look, she was thinking hard about something. He would bet a year's salary that it was about the question he had just asked.
"Spock."
"Yes, Lassuel?"
"What are we?" Spock and Lassuel were sitting in his quarters reading their own research papers. She hadn't been able to get Scotty's question out of her head and her work had gone downhill all day.
"I'm not sure I understand the specifics of this question."
"Scotty asked me earlier if we were together."
"Well, if you mean enjoy each others company, then I would assume that we are. However, in my experience with humans, the meaning of this statement usually implies one of romantic sorts."
Lassuel shook her head, "Forget about it Spock. It was stupid, we're just friends." She was a loose wire, ready to rip someone apart at the slightest moment, but she had begun to notice a more tranquil feeling since she had begun to spend more time with the Commander. It was nothing like the past romances she'd had which typically began and ended in flames of passion and anger. She shook her head again and went back to reading her PADD.
Spock looked at his companion and noted her confused facial expressions. His face remaining quiet calm, he began a deep reflection of his relationship with Lieutenant Nyota Uhura. He had never had a relationship of that sort with anyone before. It was confusing for the both of them, but he would always assume more so for himself than Nyota. When she first died, he did not think that he would ever be able to enter a relationship of that sort with someone else again. The relationship was one of such intimacy on his part, and he had been so hurt by her death, he was actually afraid of it happening again.
Spock watched Lassuel take in a deep sigh, rise from her chair and leave the room with nothing more than a, "Night," said again that evening between the two of them. Spock watched the door for a second longer and then looked at the chair she had sat in. Nyota had told him in the course of love, you cannot list the pros and cons. It had taken him a while to stop doing that with his relationship with Nyota, but he had succeeded as he normally does. Lassuel had a temper that could make her extremely volatile under circumstances that Scotty had mentioned and Spock only had brief glimpses of. But she was attractive and well versed on many subjects other than her specific interest of quantum physics. They had spent many an evenings talking about the ideas of religion, morals, politics, and family units. Though they may have disagreed on several points, neither had felt belittled by the other.
"I know you have a heart, Spock. So please, think with it." Nyota had said that during one conversation of theirs when they were discussing relationships.
Spock concluded that this required deeper reflection and more time before he could come to an answer.
"Jim, what are your opinions of relationships and love?" Spock had waited to talk to someone he considered a confidant before coming to a decision. More importantly, Lassuel had been raised on Earth, where certain customs were still difficult for Spock to understand.
"Eh, oh, um, I guess if you find someone attractive in both body and mind, then one should try to pursue a relationship with that person." Kirk's eyes glanced toward a woman who had just walked by in the traditional Ensign uniform.
"And of love?"
"Love is just something that happens without you really helping or hurting it. Someone might not know if they really love someone for a long time, but once you do, you do."
"How do you think someone really knows if they love another person?"
"It depends on each person. Some people describe it as a racing heart whenever they think of the other person, someone else might describe it as a strong feeling of calm."
"Thank you Jim."
"Anytime Spock. You know?" Spock had just risen to leave when Kirk addressed him again.
"I think you're a good thing for Lassuel. She's never been able to stand being in one place for more than a few months. Or rather, her peers get fed up with her over a few months."
This comment gave Spock more to contemplate. His discussion with the Captain had slightly helped him in his endeavor to decide what he felt was the right thing in this case.
"Lassuel, tomorrow night, would you mind joining me for dinner in my quarters?" Spock had come down to the engineering deck after his shift had ended and hers was just about to begin. "I know that neither of us has to work during that time and I would appreciate you coming." Lassuel looked at him with a bit of a shocked expression on her face.
"Uh, sure Spock. I'll see you what, around eighteen hundred?"
"That will work. Thank you ."
"You're welcome?" With that Spock left so that Lassuel could go to work.
When Lassuel entered Spock's quarters, she noticed something different right off the bat. His rooms usually smelled of nothing in particular, but this time, they had a slight scent of flowers attached to them. There was also a table set up in the middle of the room. Two chairs sat facing each other with utensils, plate-ware, and glasses. Lassuel knew that something was up, and had managed to track down a skirt that fit her in time to come here. She wore what she considered her "nice" black tank top along with a gray skirt and some loafers.
"Again, thank you for coming Lassuel." Spock appeared from his bed room, he too looked more refined than usual.
"Sure, Spock."
"I have something to discuss with you, would you like to eat now or afterwords?"
"Uhm, how about during?"
"That also works." Spock went to the table and pulled out a chair, indicating that that was where she was to sit. She was facing the windows out of his quarters. She could see the stars, and nothing else. It was different from looking out a window back on Earth when there was so much for one to see. Spock had pushed the chair in under her as she sat down. This wasn't something he had done before. Lassuel began to look around the room for more of a clue as to what he wanted to talk about. He brought the plates over that the ship had made for them and filled their glasses with their own particular drinks. Spock had long ago realized that Lassuel had certain drinks in certain situations. He believed that she would want to drink water during this situation.
They each had taken a few bites of their meals when Lassuel spoke, "So what did you want to talk about Spock?"
"I want to talk about "us", as I believe you put it once."
"Like I said Spock, that was a stupid question on Scotty's part. Don't think too much about it."
"I believe that is too late. I have thought a great deal on what you said. I have also asked Jim several questions, and have done research on the matter." Lassuel's mouth turned into a small smile, typical Spock, let's research something. She much preferred to jump in head first and take whatever was coming to her.
"Alright, what did you want to discuss specifically?"
"I believe that I have come to the conclusion that I would like to enter into a relationship with you. I know that the next step is to ask you if you would like to reciprocate my actions?"
"So, let me guess this straight. You asked me on a date to ask me on a date?"
"If I understand your definition of "date" correctly, then yes. I have asked you to a romantic and intimate situation to ask if you would be willing to enter a romantic relationship with me." Lassuel took one more bite just to give herself sometime to think. Well, she had already done a lot of thinking on this particular subject, but she had assumed that Spock would have taken his typical approach and found her to be not the best companion for him.
"What did you have in mind for a romantic relationship? We already hang out privately and publicly together."
"I do believe that a romantic relationship describes a physical closeness as well."
"Spock, how many relationships have you had in the past."
"It can be narrowed down to one romantic relationship."
"What happened?" Lassuel looked him directly in the eye.
"Her name was Lieutenant Nyota Uhura. She worked here on the Enterprise. However, we had an unfortunate trip to Janus VI. Several were killed, including her."
Lassuel looked down for a second and then looked back up at him. "How far did you go?"
"We had become extremely intimate before her death. She was spending some evenings and nights here in my room."
"Ok. Uhm." Lassuel looked down again and began examining what was left of her plate. She was not very hungry anymore. She then stood up and walked around the table till she stood near Spock and grabbed his hand and indicated she wanted him to stand. When he did, she wrapped her arms around his waist and held him close in a hug.
Spock was rather confused by this point. Nyota had always been rather straightforward with her feelings. It seemed as if Lassuel was in conflict with herself. He assumed the best course of action would be to return her hug, at which point he did by wrapping his arms around her as well. She seemed to snuggle her head into his chest and just stand there for a while. He was still waiting for her definitive answer when she left for the evening, but he was highly certain he knew what it was.